Map Quilt Workshop with Amy Dame

Amy Dame is a modern quilter and a sometimes art quilter who used this technique to make a huge map of Vancouver that was so accurate that attendees at an art show were able to pinpoint locations on the map to mark events in their lives. Amy is a founding executive member of the Vancouver Modern Quilt Guild and has been quilting for more than 15 years and sewing for more than 25. You can check out Amy’s website at www.amydame.ca and follow them on Instagram @amydamemakesstuff

For this workshop, we’ll be taking the techniques used for the map above to create smaller personalized maps. A combination of raw edge applique and confetti applique will be used to create a map that showcases a special location in your life. Home can literally be where the heart is!
(Or in the case of this sample – VMQG meetings are where the heart is!)

We’ll use free motion quilting and straight line quilting to construct a wall hanging, but you don’t need to be experienced at either technique. The supply fee includes the beginning of a personalized pattern using the address of your choice – you’ll finish creating the 10” x 12” pattern during the workshop. Whether or not you complete your quilt by the end of the day depends on how complex your pattern is, but most people should start on the last step. Participants will take their quilts home to rinse and wash before assembling the wall hanging.

There will be discussion and demonstration towards the end of the workshop of ways to complete the quilt after washing, including how to mount the quilt on stretcher bars and finish the sides, if that is the technique you choose.

This is a fun workshop. We’ll get sticky (sometimes very sticky!) and play with scraps of fabric, and quilt through lots of layers and sometimes stitches might skip. You won’t end up with an award worthy quilt with a gorgeous backside, and that’s okay because you’ll be learning a new technique and making a quilt that means something to you.

The machine you bring to the workshop needs to be able to do straight walking foot quilting, free motion quilting and zigzag stitch. This workshop uses a variety of tools that are chemical based, most notably 505 adhesive and sharpie markers. Please be aware of this – it’s recommended that you wear a mask while using these tools, and if it is a rainy day, we will be using spray adhesive inside. If you are especially sensitive to 505 spray adhesive, this may not be the class for you.

In addition to the workshop fee payable to VMQG, there is also a $20 per person supply fee payable to Amy directly. The $20 supply fee covers the map base fabric, tulle, wash-away stabilizer, 12 weight thread, yarn, a schmetz 110/18 denim needle, print outs for your individualized map pattern, and the grey, green and blue fabrics used for the maps. (If your map is not of an urban area, you will need to bring your own fabric.) A supply list will also be distributed, and you will need to bring the items on the list to supplement what is provided for you.